Pep Guardiola was a happy and satisfied man on Wednesday night.
Having lost nine Premier League games, three of the last six, including to Southampton at the weekend, Manchester City have came in for some major criticism.
So what better than Newcastle United to turn up…
Alan Shearer accused the NUFC players of being beaten before the match kicked off.
Whilst Steve Bruce’s tactics were appalling, his entire team sitting so deep and no attempt at all to press the opposition. No wonder Man City set a new 93.7% PL pass completion record as they were allowed to do as they pleased.
Pep Guardiola paying special tribute to goalscorer and man of the match David Silva, 34 years old now but he strolled through the Newcastle defensive ranks.
With second place all but mathematically assured, Pep Guardiola is now looking forward to potential FA Cup and Champions League glory in the coming weeks.
As for Newcastle fans, they could be in for what will feel like a very long few weeks unless Steve Bruce and his team respond positively to this embarrassing night for NUFC.
Pep Guardiola talking to the official club site:
“What he [David Silva] has done is incredible, fantastic.
“Not just for the game today, for the last 10 years.
“What we want is for the people to come back to the Etihad for a game for him as one of the legends of the Club.
“In the small spaces, he is maybe the best I have seen
“He came back from lockdown in incredible rhythm. If he decided to, he could play anywhere. There’s no doubt about that.
“The level he is at is the best of this season. He is playing really, really good.
“The fans are not here but he is going to come back to bid them farewell.
“As I say, the way he works in the pockets, is incredible. The young players learn from David by example, not by the words.
“He’s someone who doesn’t talk much but he leads by example in the training sessions.
“He is such a competitor.”
Asked if winning the Champions League would be the perfect send off for David Silva?:
“Of course. For him, for Sergio and it would have been nice for Vincent last season.
“We need one point to be in the UCL next season. On 13 July we’ll know the results [of the appeal against a Champions League ban] and if we can play in it.
“We won again on the pitch, where we deserved to do. We have spoken about this.
“We have four incredible weeks ahead of us that will never come back.
“It will come back, but in a different way. This chance we have to get to the FA Cup final and Madrid in the second leg, it depends on us.
“In the game we played against Southampton, we created more chances. I don’t have doubts about these guys.
“This game is about winning, that’s all. We did it in the recent past.
“We are in a good position in the Premier League, scoring a lot of goals.
“That’s the way we want to play, for our people. Respecting the game of football. That’s it.
“And prepare well for Arsenal [in the FA Cup] and the second leg for Madrid.
“We have played an incredible high level since lockdown. I didn’t expect it. You have to get results.
“It would be nice for David and all of us to win the Champions League.”
When Kevin De Bruyne went down after a heavy challenge by Danny Rose:
“I was trembling!
“That was scary.
“But after the third goal he made two big runs and I thought, OK, he is fit.
“I haven’t spoken to him because of social distancing. We have two or three locker rooms.
“The doctor hasn’t said anything to me.”
Stats from BBC Sport:
Manchester City 5 Newcastle 0 – Wednesday 8 July 2020 6pm
Goals:
Manchester City:
Jesus 10, Mahrez 21, Fernandez (OG) 58, Silva 65, Sterling 90+1
Possession was Man City 74% Newcastle 26%
Total shots were Man City 23 Newcastle 6
Shots on target were Man City 9 Newcastle 1
Corners were Man City 8 Newcastle 1
Referee: Andy Madley
Newcastle United:
Dubravka, Yedlin, Krafth (Muto 84), Fernandez, Schar, Rose, Shelvey (M Longstaff 66), Bentaleb, Lazaro (Manquillo 66), Ritchie (Atsu 84), Joelinton (Gayle 66)
Unused Subs:
Darlow, Almirón, Allan, Young
Crowd: 00,000
(I won’t be listening to Talksport again after Manchester City 5 Newcastle 0 – Read HERE)
(Alan Shearer quizzed by Gary Lineker as Newcastle allow new embarrassing Premier League record to be set – Read HERE)
(Riyad Mahrez after hammering Newcastle United “It’s not easy but we made it easy…” – Read HERE)
(Manchester City 5 Newcastle 0 – Instant NUFC fan/writer reaction to Wednesday’s dismal defeat – Read HERE)
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